This textbook provides graduate and advanced undergraduate students with a critical and comprehensive introduction to participatory research methods. Rather than prescribing fixed techniques, it offers a conceptual map of the tensions, innovations, and unresolved dilemmas that shape participatory approaches today. Drawing from various research fields, including socio-ecological modeling and urban governance, the book integrates computational, collaborative, and expert-driven perspectives into a unified framework, promoting dialogue across different methodological traditions.

Students will gain a nuanced understanding of participation as a contested and performative practice rather than a neutral design choice. The book equips readers with the theoretical foundations, ethical considerations, and practical insights necessary for designing inclusive and reflexive research. By addressing questions of power, legitimacy, and representation, it prepares emerging scholars to navigate complexity and produce socially responsible knowledge in an era of global challenges.

Stefania Capogna is an Associate Professor of Sociology of Economic Processes and Work at Link Campus University in Rome, Italy, where she directs the Doctoral School. She founded and leads the Research Centre on Digital Technologies, Education & Society, and serves as Scientific Director of Quaderni di Comunità. Her work explores the intersection of digital innovation, education, and social change, with a focus on how technology reshapes professional practices and societal structures.

Ivan Galligani is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Letters, Philosophy and Communication at the University of Bergamo, Italy. His research focuses on social and health policies and the evaluation of their impacts, often through mixed-methods approaches, including case studies, action research and Delphi surveys. He is currently investigating digitalisation processes in healthcare, with particular attention to the adoption of emerging technologies and care models, such as telemedicine and AI-enabled medicine, and with a specific focus on the intersections between policy interventions, organisational arrangements and professional practices.

Barbara Sena is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Bergamo, where she teaches general sociology, research methods, and the sociology of health. She is a member of the Ph.D. program in Health and Longevity. Her research focuses on healthcare systems, interprofessional collaboration, and methodological innovation, including case studies and mixed-method designs, with particular attention to palliative care and telemedicine.

Sabrina Moretti is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Italy. She teaches courses on social research methodology, social network analysis, and data analysis for communication. Her research interests include computational modeling of social processes and the application of network analysis to scientific and healthcare organizations. She has coordinated projects on participatory models for socio-health integration and disaster management.

Tiziana Tarsia is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Messina, Italy, where she teaches social research methods and their application in educational and social service contexts. Her research explores collaborative and participatory approaches, knowledge co-production, and social practices in settings of migration, poverty, and vulnerability. She is committed to developing innovative methodologies that bridge academic inquiry and professional practice.